German box clock, Westminster chime, ca. 1920

A nice German box clock.

Typically, I don’t buy these clocks now as they do not hold much interest to me anymore. This one caught my attention because it is a Westminster Chime movement and the case is in exceptional condition.

The movement will require disassembling and cleaning, a task that I’m just not ready to do just yet. I have taken apart some Westminster Chime movements, most have been weight driven. This one looked to be a little challenging so, I’ll tackle it when I have time to devote if it becomes a total nightmare.

Many clocks in my collection have almost ended up being thrown through my office window in the middle of the night due to shear frustration. This one has potential!

German box clock. ca 1920.

Typical German wall (box clock), not particularly collectable.

German Box Clock

 I’ve kept this one because it strikes on a Chime Rod as opposed to a Coil Gong. The chime rod produces a deep, resonating chime when the clock strikes.

Older Box clocks are fitted with coil gangs. I like clocks that produce a quality chime.

My favorite Grandfather clocks are French Morbier clocks. They all have one down side in that they all strike on a bell that is not very pleasing, especially with Morbier movements because they strike the hours twice: once at five minutes to the hour and then again ‘on’ the hour.

I only wind the time side on these clocks in order to maintain my sanity. Most antique tall case clocks also strike on a bell. I’m sure this is disappointing to many who would own one if they had a nice sounding chime instead of a somewhat annoying bell.

German wall clock. ca 1880.

A lovely antique wall clock.

German Wall Clock

This is the second clock of this type in my collection. It, like the first, is missing the top piece. Many clocks such as this were made with a top piece that simply sits on top of the clock in a slot.

As you can imagine, most that come with the tops are not the original tops. Clocks with the original tops are slightly more collectable then those with matches or, in this case, no top. I have the option to purchase a reproduction top piece or find an antique that is a close match. However, I rather like the way these clocks look without top crowns.

This clock had very little work done to it other than cleaning and oiling the movement. I did not clean any of the brass work as this clock has developed a wonderful oxidized patina on the brass work and the dial has a particularly fine patina.

Clock ‘restoration’ verses ‘preservation’ is subjective. I have read various opinions on the subject. I generally do not do undertake complete restorations on antique clocks. I will perform more ‘preventive maintenance’ or ‘stabilizing’ repair work.

I will however perform complete restorations on vintage clocks.

Modern Times

As you may have noticed, not all my clocks are antique or vintage. Occasionally I will pick up a newer clock if I find it to be of interest and of good quality. Here are two such clocks, both German contemporary designs manufactured by Kieninger.

German contemporary designs manufactured by Kieninger

One is weight driven and one spring wind. Both are eight day time and strike movements.

I like to run all my clocks from time to time and there are few antique clocks that I run continually. This is where my newer clocks come in to play.

Although there are dozens of machine shops manufacturing copies of antique clock movements throughout the world, there are only three major producers left. They are Hermle, Kieninger, and Urgos. Of the three, Kieninger is regarded as the best quality.

French Vedette Box Clock. 1920’s.

French Vedette wall clock.

French Vedette Box Clock. 1920’s.

I have two clocks of this type in my collection. They are both well-made clocks with high quality robust movements. These are not the most attractive clocks to collect. However, they are, by far, two of the best sounding chiming clocks in my collection. They both have the best quality chime rods and when the hammers are set at optimum height the chime and strike sound quality is very good indeed.

I recall that one of the mainsprings had broken on this clock and upon disassembly, I found that the spring had broken at the ‘hole-end’ about 3 inches from the end. As such, I was able to salvage the spring by un-tempering the end and re-fabricating a new hole. Then, after cleaning and oiling, I could refit the original spring.

I recall having a tough time fitting the spring back into the barrel by hand. One tool that I have gotten away without thus far is a main spring winder, at a price of nearly severing my fingers!!

Seth Thomas Long Drop World Regulator. 1910.

This is another 14 day world regulator.

Seth Thomas Long Drop World Regulator. 1910.

You may have noticed that I have several clocks of this design in my collection. Undoubtedly, this is one of my favorite designs of wall clock. They were very versatile clocks, originally designed for public display in places such as, schools houses, offices, train stations, post offices, and banks.

Some of them have the name and location of the establishment printed on the clock face. As you can see this clock came from a business in Petersfield, England.

Seth Thomas and Ansonia both manufactured similar clocks. I have worked on both. I prefer the movement design in the Seth Thomas models because the suspension spring is hung separately and attached to the clock case and the pendulum hangs in the case unattached from the movement. However, I think Ansonia have the better cases.

German wall clock. 1860’s.

German wall clock. 1860’s

This is a very tall German wall clock 8 day time and strike.

This clock has lantern pinions. I have not cleaned the face or pendulum on this clock because it has such a wonderful old patina on the surfaces and the brass work.

I purchased this clock without the top. Very often these clocks come up for sale and very few have the original tops; even fewer have the bases attached. They are still quite collectable even without the tops.

Ansonia short-drop Calendar clock. 1880’s.

This is my second calendar clock.

Ansonia short-drop Calendar clock. 1880’s.

This one appears to be in original condition. The movement required cleaning and I tidied up the case.

German Wall Clock. 1930’s.

This is the first clock I ever purchased, the one that started all the madness.

German Wall Clock. 1930s.

At the time, I probably thought I was getting a priceless antique. However, this type of clock is probably one of the most common types found at auction houses.

This particular (vintage) clock had a silvered face that was very badly scratched and the same for the pendulum. To have the face restored would have well exceeded the value of the clock. As such, I replaced the face with a paper overlay that I stained with coffee to create an aged look. I also replaced the pendulum bob. The correct way to restore a silvered clock face is to have it done professionally. However, in this case it was not a viable option.

This particular clock is still one of the best sounding clocks in my collection; the gong must be of very good quality. Clocks are just like musical instruments, larger ones have the same characteristics as a musical instrument with a large ‘sound box’: the bigger the box the richer the sound.

Clocks such as this make nice time pieces and you don’t have to worry about breaking any ‘cardinal rules’ when it comes to restoring them…. not particularly desired by collectors.

French Wall clock. Late1800’s.

I don’t have much info on this one.

French(?) Wall Clock

Not even certain that it is French – may be German.

I don’t think the crown is original. The movement is in nice condition. Porcelain face and matching pendulum.

The letters R/A appear in the center of the pendulum. R/A stands for Advance and Retard. This is for adjusting the clock, indicating that one should turn the pendulum adjustment knob toward the R (anti-clockwise) to slow the time and toward the A (clockwise) to advance the time. This action simply lowers or raises the pendulum bob thus speeding up or slowing the pendulum swing.